This is starting to get a little ridiculous now. It seems as if I can’t even make it through my lunch break without hearing of some catastrophic injury news. No matter how well teams manage their young hurlers’ inning limits (Jose Fernandez), or how many times we yell to ourselves, “Stop sliding head-first on the base paths!” (Ben Zobrist), the injuries just seem to keep piling up.

Here are this week’s injuries and other health-related situations to monitor…

Prince Fielder, Rangers: Surprisingly enough, the flat-footed, lumbering Fielder had the longest active games-played streak in the land. After 547 games, though, the 30-year-old was forced to sit out Saturday and Sunday due to a herniated disk in his neck. He plans on returning for Tuesday’s game vs. the Mariners, but that seems like a very optimistic outlook. Fielder received an injection in his neck, and while it’s possible the pain subsides enough for him to play this week, the injury itself is not one to be taken lightly. It is the same ailment that New Orleans Pelicans’ power forward Ryan Anderson sustained in January, which caused him to miss nearly the entire NBA season and ultimately have surgery. It’s a shame for Fielder’s owners, as he was starting to swing a better bat of late, going 6-for-13 over his previous four games. If there’s anything good to take from this, it’s that Fielder claims his neck has been an issue since March, which could’ve been a main contributor to his early-season hitting woes. Hopefully he is pain-free, but owners should be looking to move him if they can. Mitch Moreland (23 HR in 2013) is a nice option to have on standby in deeper leagues. Somewhere in Michigan, Ian Kinsler is smiling.

Jose Abreu, White Sox: Even the hottest hitter in the land is not immune to the injury bug. Abreu’s ankle has been an issue all season long, but it’s now bad enough that the Sox have placed him on the 15-day DL. One has to wonder how much fire Robin Ventura has been playing with. Ventura kept saying he was planning on giving Abreu a day off, but each day he said that, he went back on his word and started him. Maybe a day off or two vs. the lowly Astros would have been worth it? At any rate, the extended time off should do him well. He will receive an MRI early this week, but the team believes he’s merely dealing with tendinitis in his ankle and the minimum stay on the DL will be sufficient. You can’t replace 15 HR and 52 RBI, but at least they got Adam Eaton back today! If you’re looking for a fill-in, Paul Konerko was seen checking out of Shady Acres Retirement Home and setting up a bowl of hard candy and potpourri in front of his locker at US Cellular Field.

Other Injury Notes:

Joey Votto, Reds: A quad strain has kept the Reds’ 1B out of the lineup for the past three games, and while the team is saying he shouldn’t require a DL stint (as of Sunday afternoon), they may have to eventually do so. Votto is having the worst season of his illustrious career, so maybe some time off to gather his thoughts will do him some good.

Carlos Gomez, Brewers: Whether it’s because of back pain, a suspension, or the flu, Gomez hasn’t set foot on the field for the past five games. It’s a little troublesome that he was set to play Saturday, only to have his back stiffen up on him again. The Brewers begin Week 8 facing the Braves’ tough trio of Mike Minor, Julio Teheran and Ervin Santana, so owners in weekly leagues might consider benching Gomez if they have an adequate replacement.

Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals: X-rays showed that Zimm’s broken thumb hasn’t completely healed, but that hasn’t stopped the team from letting him practice — in the outfield. It’s an interesting development from a fantasy point of view, as OF-eligibility would be a nice bonus for anyone who owns the third baseman. The Nats’ reasoning behind it? To fill the void left by Bryce Harper in left field and allow Danny Espinosa to continue to stay in the lineup. Matt Williams is clearly confusing Espinosa with someone who can hit. The 27-year-old free-swinger is 5-for-46 with 18 K’s over his last 11 games.

Gio Gonzalez, Nationals: The Nationals should change their stadium name to the “Washington Nationals’ Center for the Disabled”. Gio was placed on the DL with shoulder inflammation and an MRI showed proof that’s all it was. Phew. Owners can breathe a little sigh of relief and hope the time off can fix his recent troubles — the left-hander had allowed 12 ER and 3 HR over his last 7.1 IP. A minimum absence would be nice, but I would be surprised if he returns any earlier than three weeks.

Mark Trumbo, Diamondbacks: Trumbo is still in a walking boot, but hopes to rejoin the team for a six-game road trip that begins July 1st in Pittsburgh. At least we now have a little bit more clarity as to when the D-Backs’ slugger will return. Fantasy owners are bursting with excitement at the prospects of being able to plug Trumbo and his .210 batting average back into their lineups.

Andrew Cashner, Padres: The Padres’ ace has landed on the DL with “elbow soreness” and will undergo an MRI on Monday. Cashner was solid in his last outing (7 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K), but this is not good news. It’s very likely we could have Tommy John surgery No. 368,922 of the 2014 season on the way. What a slap in the testicles this is. Keep an eye on Matt Wisler down on the farm, as this could expedite his call up to The Show.

Follow SethDaSportsMan on Twitter at, you guessed it, @SethDaSportsMan, for quality fantasy sports advice and the deepest veneration of all things Nicolas Cage

thoughts on Motte? He should be activated as early as tomorrow and will most likely be the closer by June. My current closers: Soriano, Cishek, Rodney, Doolittle. Should I drop any of them for Motte or hold for now?

@kisses: I dont think it’s any guarantee he’s the closer within 2 weeks, but worth an add. I’d drop Doolittle. It’s not that I love Rosenthal, but we can’t forget Motte is coming off Tommy John. He’ll be eased in.

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I was offered Tanaka, Ventura and Corey Seager for Kershaw, Kluber and Marisnick. 16 team dynasty league. Can I get more than that for Kershaw? How close to Kershaw is Tanaka? He’s been extremely impressive so far. I’m stumped because I think Seager will be a lot better than Marisnick. Thoughts?

Gotta put Kershaw ahead of Tanaka, but it’s not by that much. Kershaws last start worries me a bit. Could be a recurrence of injury. I agree with your point on Seager/Marisnick. Like Seager a lot more and I also like Ventura more than Kluber, at least in dynasty leagues. I’d pull the trigger

Sale is coming back from a strained tendon to his elbow this week. Is he damaged goods from now on or do you think he ;s good to go ??? Elbow injuries scare me on power pitchers like him. But he is such a stud when he’s right. Chicago has a revitalized lineup and I’m considering a deal for him. What’s your feelings on this ???

I have both Prince and Lowrie (playing at 2B for me). My replacement options for this week would be Ike Davis and/or Bonifacio. I know, ugh. Deep league (16 team, H2H points). Given the unknowns/production issues with Prince/Jed, do you think I should bench either/both of them for Ike/Boneface?

@Pistol Pete: Tough call there for you for sure. Prince says he’ll be back tomorrow, and I sort of believe him. Whether he’s effective or not is another question, though. He also has a 4-game set vs. the Tigers at the end of the week. Replacing Lowrie with Bonifacio is an easier decision. Id put Emilio in there rather than risk not having anyone at all

Very nice article. I enjoyed reading it, especially about the mark trumbo owners. He’s a free agent in my shallow points league..he could be an intriguing add I suppose if more injuries occur to my team i.e. Abreu, Zimmerman, Chris Davis…

Great read!
12 team yahoo $ league that got auto drafted when I couldn’t get home in time thru the first 8 rounds.. Damn rush hour traffic! This is painful but after a few moves, 6/wk, allowed, here is what I have:
C Santana
1b C Davis
2b Beckham
3b Headley
SS Reyes
OF Cargo, Dom Brown, L Martin, Singleton
DL Harper, Votto, Bruce, Kipnis, Trumbo, and Zimmerman
SP Miller, Haren, Peralta, Harang, Dickie, Skaggs, Hughes (Dropped JO Fer) SMH
RP Frieri, Motte
I know I am beyond help, I NEVER give up and certainly cant before it starts.
Which DL’ed players would you cut loose to fill spots?
Also your thoughts on Stubbs?
This mess is beyond a “guru” but would appreciate any advice other than the obvious..Get home in time!!!!!
Thanks.

I’m dropping Motte/Frieri there. Dont see the need in having 1-2 pseudo-closers (if that). If your league requires 2 RP, I’d rather go with long relief guys that eat innings and can at least steal some wins. I’d try trading one of those DL guys, I wouldnt flat out drop any of them. Votto may get a nice return.

Stubbs is gonna lose a bunch of ABs when Cuddyer comes back. He wont likely get more than 1-2 starts a week, especially since hes traditionally struggled vs. RHP

Nice read as always…first time commenting on one of your blogs…would appreciate your advice.

16 team keeper, that counts .OPS and Holds…we also use LF/Cf/RF. Can keep 5. Would you move Braun in a package for Abreu? Brauns price is at $49…Abreu is a $24…inflation is up to $5 a year based on where one places. I won’t be keeping Braun at that price. I would keep Abreu. It’s a h2h league btw, and am sitting in first at the moment…my offense in there…

As you can see it’s pretty nice for 16 teams. I was thinking of something along the lines of Braun/Tex for Abreu/Alfonso Soriano. The guy has already said he is interested in moving Abreu for something with Braun. I really don’t like trading for injured players..to me it’s just playing with fire. But, with me being in first, and it being a keeper, I think I could make sue in the short term. Cuddyer would be my 1B in the mean time ( hearing he should be back tomorrow). What are your thoughts on this? Thanks!

@JoeMorgan’sMustache: I like that deal. You get a younger player at a cheaper price and would have no issues filling the LF spot with Viciedo. I dont think Abreu’s injury is gonna be long term and it’s not like Braun has been fully healthy either (still has the nerve issue in finger).

12 team keeper/dynasty league and JoFer’s owner has him locked up for $13 for next year (standard $260 budget). Is he worth trying to trade for if the price is right? or is next year too uncertain for him? He could be back in June/July of next year, but could also be out most, if not all, of the season as well.

@Josh: it’s a tempting price if his owner is willing to trade him for next to nothing, but I don’t think well see much impact from him next year. 2016 more reasonable as far as fantasy relevance. Prolly better to stay away

Looking at last year’s results in my 8 team h2h pts league, Derek Holland seemed to do awfully well at 23rd out of all pitchers. Is he someone worth stashing or do you have worries about him structurally when he returns? I’ve got 2 DL slots to give once Cobb gets back this week and was looking for some more bodies to roll in there for now anyway.

@Clint: Holland is a GREAT stash. I featured him in my debut column last month and I still believe it. His injury is to his knee, so while there could always be some issues from that, at least it isn’t arm-related